A’s trade Chris Bassitt to Mets for two prospects

MLB players are arriving in Florida and Arizona for spring training following the lockout, and one notable name is already on the move. The Oakland Athletics are trading starting pitcher Chris Bassitt to the New York Mets for two prospects. The Mets are giving up JT Ginn and Adam Oller, the former of whom ranks fifth in the team’s system at Baseball America. Joel Sherman was the first with the return for Bassitt.

The Mets have been working to upgrade their starting pitching and the A’s are regularly looking to unload players due a big raise. Bassitt was entering his final season of arbitration eligibility before hitting free agency. He’s coming off a 2021 season in which he was 12-4 with a 3.15 ERA across 27 starts. He had a 1.06 WHIP and opposing hitters had a .218 batting average against him.

Last season, Oller finished the year with eight starts at Triple-A Syracuse and finished 4-1 with a 2.45 ERA and 1.02 ERA across 44 innings. He’ll likely compete quickly for a spot in the A’s starting rotation. Ginn is a bit behind, splitting time across regular and high A ball. In ten starts at high A, he was 3-4 with a 3.38 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP across 53.1 innings.